Path Valley Whitsel Memorial report

Path Valley racers honor Memory of Darin Whitsel
Spring Run, PA_ "Darin was among my best friends, and I know if he were
here he would love these races," said Jimmy Callahan after winning the
Dash for Cash at the Path Valley Speedway Park's ...

Path Valley racers honor Memory of Darin Whitsel

Spring Run, PA_ "Darin was among my best friends, and I know if he were
here he would love these races," said Jimmy Callahan after winning the
Dash for Cash at the Path Valley Speedway Park's special Saturday night
Darin Whitsel Memorial.

"I hope we can make this an annual event and keep Darin with us, at
least in memory," Callahan said.

Whitsel, a homicide victim in December, was a key racer for more than a
decade at local tracks, and the Darin Whitsel Memorial was organized by
Chris Talbot and Doug Booher of SSATAF Racing to remember their friend
and fellow worker and to raise funds for his young sons, Devin and Gage.
The Darin Whitsel memorial website is at www.geocities.com/darin121670/.

Appropriately, all three 30-lap feature winners had raced against Whitsel
or in other classes with him. Donnie Hendershot of Clear Spring MD took
home the $600-to-win in the 600cc Sprints and the first place trophy from
Russell Brantner of Brantner Masonry. Doug Hoffman took the $1000 win in
the V-8 Street Stocks and Jerry Bard of Shippensburg won the $1000 mini
stock feature.

The approving crowd stayed following Callahan's dash win and heartfelt
tribute to enjoy a booming and flashing fireworks show by Republic
Fireworks Limited of Harrisburg.

The 600 Sprints opened the show with Josh Weller in the lead and Donnie
Hendershot, fresh from a win the night before, starting sixth. On the
second lap, defending champion Jim Brookens flipped on turn one to bring
out a red flag. Hendershot moved into second on lap five and finally took
the lead through the inside of turns three and four on lap 19.

The race went non-stop after a lap 13 restart and Hendershot built up a
full turn lead before encountering the rear of the pack on lap 23. With
Weller on his bumper amid lapped cars Hendershot broke free on lap 28 to
rebuild a decisive lead on the smooth, hard clay. Heat race winners were
Duane Harbaugh and Jim Callahan and Harbaugh drew a #10 pill for the
starting order inversion. Weller and Steve Owens took home the second and
third place trophies.

A little bit of luck was all Jerry Bard needed and he got it when
defending mini stock champion Arlin Brougher won the first heat race and
drew another 10 pill to put Bard on the pole. Frankie Gordon dogged him
all the way to the finish, through a dozen cautions and restarts
including three to finish lap 29, and two-time past champion Ricky Harper
came from seventh to claim the third place trophy. Along with Brougher,
John Stoll Jr. and Brian Lessley won heat races. All of the six cars that
made the lineup call for the consi advanced to the feature.

Doug Hoffman, of Newville, pulled alongside leader Tony Stoneberger at
the pole on lap seven of the street stock feature and completed his pass
out of turn four on the next lap. Then on the next lap Hoffman overtook
Brian Helman and Stoneberger used the cars going a lap down to pull
alongside Hoffman. A lap 19 restart regrouped the leaders and put Hoffman
securely in the lead with Steve Lowery in second but Stoneberger took
back that spot on the next circuit and a final lap caution and restart
was anticlimactic. Heat winners were Randy Patterson and Jeff Bennett and
Patterson drew a six-car inversion to put Terry Deshong on the pole.

Jim Callahan got the hole shot at the start of the five-lap dash for cash
and at the finish all four cars were evenly spaced about four lengths
apart, in order, Callahan, Duane Harbaugh, Donnie Hendershot and Pat
Klose.

Regular racing resumes next Friday night, June 14, at Path Valley with
double features for the Central PA Legends Cars that produced two INEX
national champions last season. A Kid's Foot Race is scheduled and the
Dwarf Cars make a monthly visit and will face a full technical
inspection, Geesey announced, including tires, weight, and a maximum
compression of 210 pounds. Both the Modified and Classic Dwarf Cars will
run in the same feature.

The Path Valley Speedway Park is located in Spring Run PA a mile north on
PA Route 641 from the intersection with PA Route 75, halfway between Port
Royal and Hagerstown. It is five miles east from the Willow Hill Exit 14
of the PA Turnpike. The new phone number at the track for promoter Ken
Geesey is 717-349-7111.